Love struck Reward
by Lokigirl18
Summary: Being given up to pirates is bad, getting a reward from a pirate is even worse. Follow Isabella in her life with the Straw Hat Crew as they go to the Grand Line, and she helps Luffy gain the title of 'King of Pirates'. LuffyxOC DISCONTINUED
1. Chapter 1

Chapter one

In the once peaceful Embargo Island, the villagers lived happily in their quiet and peaceful lives. The men worked in the village, the women stayed in their homes or sometimes bought food for their houses, and the children ran around the village playing. It was like that until the pirates came to the island... The pirates that came were none other than Alvida and her followers. They raided the village in search for treasure and more men to follow her, but sadly, they didn't find anything of interest. The villagers were frightened, so frightened that they gave up a child so that they could leave without destroying the village. The child's name was Isabella Merchanzi. This is her story after 10 years of being taken away...

Near an uncharted island, a ship floated there as the soothing wind blew. A woman swabbed (if that's the correct term) the ship with her finger, finding a single particle of dust. "Why is there dust on my bulwark?" asked the woman.

"A thousand pardons, Lady Alvida! I-I thought I'd cleaned every inch of this ship...!" said one of the sailors. "I'll clean everything all over again! Please-!"

"Please what...?" asked the woman known as Alvida as she eyed at the sailor.

"Please, not the Iron Mace! I-I don't wanna die!"

With only swift move the woman hit the sailor knocking him out. She then turned to a pink-haired boy who was next to her.

"Koby! Who is the fairest throughout all the seas?" Alvida asked the boy.

The little boy now known as Koby just fidgeted nervously before answering her question, "Ahem... Heh heh... Why you are... Lady Alvida! No one compares to you!"

"Correct! Which is why I will not tolerate anything dirty! The ship I sail in must be as clean and beautiful as I am. Understand?" Alvida then had a menacing look on her face. "Remember Koby, were it not for your vast knowledge of the seas, I would feed you to the sharks! But don't push your luck!"

"Y-Yes... That's very kind of you."

"Other than that, you're worthless! Here, shine my shoes!"

"Y-Yes Lady Alvida! Right away!"

"I don't want to see even one speck of dust on this ship!"

"Aye aye!" said the sailors.

Finally turning back to Koby, Alvida kicked the small boy out of cruelness. "That's enough! You're pathetic!" the woman yelled at him.

Koby just stood up with a nervous smile on his face as she quickly apologized to her. "Heh heh heh... Sorry..."

"If you've got time to grovel, then you've got time to scrub the toilet!"

"Heh heh... Yes, milady! Right away..." he said rubbing the back of his head.

Isabella was just watching the obese woman with such a bored look on her face as she lay on the floor. It had already been 10 years since she was given up by the villagers so that Alvida and her pitiless followers wouldn't destroy Embargo Village after not finding anything of interest. Being the other girl of the ship, she had to be trained by the sailors so she could fight. Alvida would get furious at them for making her learn since she told her that girls like Isabella shouldn't even fight. Unfortunately for Alvida, Isabella developed a tomboyish behavior, meaning no skirts, no revealing clothes, and definitely not looking like a girl. With her short dark brown hair, her light purple eyes, and her baggy clothing, she could've been easily mistaken as a boy. She didn't mind it though. For her, it meant that her opponents wouldn't go easy on her, making her love the challenge. In the many times she'd battle someone, after the fight, she'd let them know that she was a girl, making them feel ashamed. "Give the guys a break. It's already torture enough for them to be answering your question." she said with a small yawn escaping her lips.

Alvida looked at the girl whom she almost considered a daughter with a scowl. "Watch your tongue, young lady! You know perfectly well what I'm capable of!"

Isabella just shrugged and closed your eyes to continue your daily nap. "Whatever you say. It's not like I'm scared of you anyway. Which I'm really not."

"Koby! Get me some more rum from the storage house!" Alvida yelled at Koby.

Koby just looked down as he walked off the ship and toward the storage house. He looked like he was going to cry. Isabella sighed as she got up and followed Koby so she could help him. Before arriving, they had found a barrel adrift on the beach. Thinking that it was a barrel full of rum, Isabella and Koby decided to roll it to the storage room.

"What's that? Did a barrel of rum wash up on the beach?" a sailor asked.

"No, we decided to go to a freezing island to get the barrel. Of course we found it on the beach!" Isabella said in a sarcastic, yet annoyed kind of way.

"Y-Yeah, and it's not empty. I wasn't sure what to do with it..." Koby responded after Isabella.

"Well I know what to do with it. Let's drink it up!"

"But if the captain finds out, she'll have our heads!"

"She'll never find out!"

"We're the only ones here. Just Koby, Izzy and the three of us know about it."

"I guess you're right."

"Hey! I don't want anything to do with that barrel of rum of yours, so leave me out of it." Isabella said with an annoyed tone in her voice as she crossed her arms, watching the three idiotic sailors licking their lips as they imagine the taste of rum.

The sailor then turned to Koby with a menacing look. "And you ain't seen nothin', right Koby?"

"Right! I-I ain't seen nothin'! Heh heh heh... Please don't kill me..." Koby stuttered, but whispered the last part as a way of trying to save himself.

Isabella just sighed and shook her head in embarrassment as she watched her crewmates turn their attention once again to the barrel of rum. Suddenly the top of the barrel broke, showing a guy who looked just about Isabella's age yawning happily. You just blinked at the boy while the others just freaked out over the boy who came out of the barrel of 'rum'.

"That was a great nap!" yelled the happy boy. "Hmm... Looks like I survived somehow. I got so dizzy I thought I was gonna barf!" The boy just laughed, but stopped as he then looked around the place. "Who are you guys?"

"Who the hell are you!" asked the still freaked out sailors. "What were you doing in there!"

Isabella only gave a small glance to the ship before jumping out of the Iron Mace's way, completely destroying the storage house, making everyone fly away, except Isabella.

"Back to work, you scurvy dogs!" yelled Alvida with an aggressive anger.

Only sighing, she decided to search for Koby and the boy before going back to the ship.

"Man, today just keeps getting weirder and weirder." Isabella mumbled to herself.

Ignoring the screams of Alvida as she yelled at her lazy crew members, Isabella continued on her way to the forest to find the two boys. She found them at a nearby clearing and just sat down under a tree that was near Koby.

"Um... Are you okay? Are you hurt?" asked Koby looking worried over the boy in the barrel. After getting knocked so much you must be-"

The just started laughing at Koby's concern. "I'm fine, just a little surprised is all. My name's Luffy! Where am I?"

"This island is the hideout of Iron Mace Alvida, the lady pirate. I'm Koby, her cabin boy." he replied, relieved that Luffy was alright.

"And I'm Isabella, but you can call me Izzy if you want. I'm Alvida's head strategist." she said crossing her arms.

"I see... Well, none of that really matters to me." Luffy said as he got out of the barrel.

Koby and Isabella only sweat dropped at his blunt answer. "Oh..."

"You wouldn't happen to have a dinghy, would you? Mine got sucked into a giant whirlpool."

"You got sucked into a giant whirlpool!" Koby asked looking shocked.

"Yeah, it caught me by surprise."

"I'm surprised you managed to survive that." Isabella mused.

"Yeah ...But if it's a dinghy you want, I have one... sorta..." Koby agreed then made Luffy and Isabella follow him.

Koby showed Luffy a badly built dinghy that looked like if you were to set foot on it while it was floating on the water, it would immediately sink.

"What's this! A coffin?" Luffy asked as he stared at the small boat.

"That's the first thought that came into my mind when I first saw it." Isabella said sweat dropping.

"I built it myself. It took me two years..." Koby said with a sense of accomplishment.

"Two years! And you don't want it?"

"...I really don't need it anymore. I built it to escape from this place... ...but I don't have the courage to try it. I guess it's my fate to be a cabin boy for the rest of my life. But I once had a different dream."

"You still on to that?" Isabella asked tilting her head to the side a bit.

"Why don't you just escape?" Luffy asked bluntly.

"N-No way! Just thinking abut what Alvida would to me if she caught me makes my bladder weak... I just can't risk it..." Koby responded almost as if freaking out. "I'll never forget that fateful day... I just wanted to go fishing... ...and I boarded a pirate ship by mistake. That was two years ago. In exchange for my life, I've been working as their cabin boy."

"Oh, I remember that time... You looked so frightened like a lost puppy.." Isabella chuckled as she remembered.

"You're kinda clumsy and dumb. And you're gutless too. You really are worthless." Luffy said laughing a bit.

"Harsh.." Isabella sweat dropped.

"You don't have to be that frank... But you're right. I don't have the guts to float around at sea in a barrel like you... Luffy why did you go to sea anyway?"

"Well, ya see... I'm gonna be the King of the Pirates!" Luffy replied with a smirk.

Isabella couldn't help, but smile at his answer. 'So he wants wants to be king of the pirates huh? I'd like to see that happen.'

"King of the Pirates! But... You'd have to make the whole world kneel to you! Wealth, fame, power- You'd have to achieve it all!"

"So that means you're going after Gold Roger's lost treasure, One Piece?"

"Do you want to die! Every pirate in the world is after it!"

"And so am I."

"But the odds against you are astronomical! It's impossible! You want to be the King of the Pirates in the Golden Age of Piracy! It'll never happen!"

Getting slightly annoyed by his outbursts, Luffy punched him in the head to make him shut up.

"Hey! W-Why'd you hit me!"

"You were hysterical."

"You didn't have to hit him that hard."

"It's ok, I'm used to it. Heh heh heh..."

"I'm not afraid to die, Koby! I've set myself to become the King of the Pirates... and if I die trying... then at least I tried."

Isabella just chuckled a bit. 'You got to admire Luffy's determination. No one has that determination when they set themselves to try to get One Piece' she thought.

"Y-You're not even afraid to die!"

"Koby, that's the one rule of being a pirate. 'You can't be afraid to die.' If you were, then what's the point in being a pirate." Isabella said before zoning off from their conversation, now staring at the clouds. For once she felt at peace while looking at the clouds, when the peaceful atmosphere suddenly disappeared as she saw Alvida swing her Iron Mace, smashing his dinghy.

"Who are you going to capture, runt!" she asked angrily. "You little sneak! Did you really think you could escape from me!" Turning her attention to Isabella with the same scowl look on her face. "And you, Isabella! What are you doing here! You're supposed to be on the ship away from trouble!"

"Yeah, I'll be a good little girl and stay on the ship. Like that'll ever happen.", she scoffed as she rolled her eyes.

Her attention then changes to Luffy, looking at him up and down. "Is that the bounty hunter you hired? Well, he certainly isn't Roronoa Zoro... So I'll give you one chance to repent... Who is the fairest throughout all the seas? Answer me!"

"Heh heh heh... Lady Alvida you-"

"Who's that tough-looking old biddy?" Luffy asked as he pointed at Alvida.

Isabella busted out laughing at what he called her while the others looked shocked. "Oh my god, I haven't heard an insult like that in a very long while!"

Koby suddenly gripped Luffy's shoulders and shook him wildly. "Luffy! Take it back! Throughout all of the seas, Lady Alvida is..." Somehow this made him hesitate for a bit. "Lady Alvida is..." Remembering what Luffy told him earlier, he took out the courage he never knew he had and said, "Lady Alvida is the ugliest old hag of all!"

Everything just went quiet, all anyone could hear was the sound of the wind until Luffy and Isabella started snickering before busting out laughing.

"Oh no! I'm dying! I can't breathe!" she said holding her sides.

"Good for you Koby" Luffy said as he got him out of the way.

"It doesn't make a difference! You're both going to die!", and with a swing of her Iron Mace, she struck Luffy, but everyone was shocked to find that he didn't even budge.

"That didn't hurt. 'Cause I'm made of rubber." Luffy smirked.

"Impossible! No one survives the Iron Mace!"

Everyone got even more shocked once they saw Luffy prepare himself.

"Gum Gum.."

"What the-?"

"Pistol!"

With that attack, Luffy punched Alvida to the ground with such a great force. Everyone was still shocked to find Alvida on the ground, even Isabella was shocked.

"Give Koby a dinghy! He's going to join the Navy."

"Y-Yessir..."

Koby was starting to cry and Isabella just smiled at Luffy. The crew got them a dinghy with a sail that was big enough for 3 or more people. Isabella just stood there as she watched them off when suddenly she saw Luffy stand up on the boat from far away.

"Hey, Izzy! Want to come with us!"

Isabella just blinked then looked at her crew. They somehow knew that it was best for her to go with him since with him she could maybe become stronger.

"Sure! Why not!" she replied.

All of a sudden his arm stretched out, wrapping it around her waist and with a sudden jerk she was sent flying to where their dinghy. She closed her eyes so that the wind wouldn't bother her when she suddenly landed on top of Luffy. They both only blinked, but Isabella blushed getting off him quickly.

"Um... Thanks.." she said looking away in embarrassment.

Luffy just stared at her, and feeling his eyes boring into her head, she looked at him. "What?"

"Are you a girl?"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Are you a girl?" Luffy asked Isabella.

She stared at him with pure disbelief, not knowing how to respond that question at that current moment. Koby was looking at him with a dumbstruck look as if he just asked the most horrid question in the world. How could he not notice that she was a girl? Her name gave it away and everything, but she just sighed and nodded at the idiotic boy before her. "Yes, I am a girl. What kind of parents would name their son Isabella?"

Luffy just rubbed the back of his neck laughing nervously. "I don't know."

Koby and Isabella sighed in defeat, and she shook her head. "So you ate the Gum Gum Fruit?" asked Koby in astonishment. "But Luffy, if you're going after One Piece... That means you'll have to enter the 'Grand Life' "

"Yep."

"They call it the 'pirates' graveyard' "

"That's why I'm assembling a super-crew."

"A super-crew? And where are you going to get that?" Isabella asked with a certain amusement.

"Well, do you want to be in my crew?" Luffy replied with a grin on his face.

"From one pirate crew to another? I don't know. I'll think about it."

"Awl, come on. Please?"

"I said that I'll think about it."

Luffy then turned his attention to Koby with curious eyes. "That imprisoned at the navy base... What's his name?"

"Roronoa Zolo!"

"If he's a good guy, I'll let him join my crew!"

"Now you're talking crazy again! Never never never! That'll never happen! That guy's a demonic beast!"

"How do you know!"

"Never!"

Isabella smacked Koby upside his head while rubbing her temple. "Could you please stop shouting? You're giving me a headache..." He nodded and proceeded rowing to the island they were headed to.

"Beast, huh?" Luffy said in wonder.

"Yeah. Roronoa Zolo is also known as the 'Pirate Hunter', he's a scary person. Rumor says he's like a blood thirsty hound; he wanders around the sea and hunts down fugitives. He's a monster in the form of a man."

"Oh, yeah?"

"So let's drop the idea of recruiting him..."

"I haven't made up my mind about recruiting him yet! But if he's a good person..."

"He's arrested because he's bad!"

"There has to be another reason of why he was arrested..." Isabella said as she leaned back on the ship. Koby looked at her with a mad look on his face.

"He got arrested for hunting pirates!"

"How could he get arrested for that? In a way, he's doing a favor to the army by hunting pirates. Why was he arrested in the first place?"

This time both boys understood what she meant with her theory, but Koby was still firm with his. As they arrived at the Naval Base, the three of them got off the dinghy, Koby tying the rope to a pole to keep the boat from floating away.

"We finally made it! You were great Koby! We finally arrived at our destination!" said Luffy with a happy grin on his face.

"Huh? That's basic navigating. If you wander around at sea every time, you'll never become a pirate. You should at least find a navigator to join you." said Koby as he looked at Luffy.

"And you might want to find a boat. That small dinghy won't be enough for more than three people." she said, stretching her arms a bit.

"Alright! Let's go eat!"

And with that, the trio went into an old pub in the village where they ate. Isabella sat next to Luffy, drinking a glass of orange juice, since she liked to stay away from it after an old incident.

"We'll go our separate ways here! You do your best to be a great marine, alright?" said Luffy as he patted his stomach, feeling satisfied with the food.

"I will...! Thank you so much. Luffy, you have to become a great pirate too, although we'll be enemies in the future." Koby said then turned his attention to Isabella. "What about you Izzy? What is your goal in life?"

She only glanced at both boys before closing her eyes. "I don't know. I guess to be the best fighter in the world. That way I could protect the ones I love so that they won't get taken away by others against their will."

Luffy grinned as she said those words with a look of admiration on his face, while Koby looked like he was about to cry. "I wonder if Zolo is still being kept in the Marine's base." said Luffy in curiosity. At the mere mention of his name, the whole pub went into an uproar as tables and chairs turned because of the scared reactions of the people. They looked at each other in confusion as to why that happened, until Koby leaned in, "Looks like we can't just yell out the name 'Zolo'..."

"I just saw a notice on the streets, there's someone called Lt. Morgan at the base." And with just ending that sentence, the pub went into an even bigger uproar than the last one making the three of them blink. Once they were out of the pub, Isabella was walking between Luffy and Koby, with her hands inside her jacket pockets with a bored expression in her face as she listened to Luffy laugh his ass off.

"What an interesting restaurant! I gotta go there again."

"That's strange...! I have a bad feeling about this...! I can understand why they'd be scared hearing Zolo's name since he could escape at any time, but why would they be afraid of a marine lieutenant's name too?"

"Well, he could've done something bad, right?"

"That's impossible!"

"I'm serious."

"Well, he could've done something so that everyone could fear him. It's just so obvious." Isabella said now putting her hands behind her head.

While walking to the Marine base, Luffy looked at her with the same curiosity he had when he asked her if she was a girl earlier. "Hey, Izzy. How long have you been in Alvida's crew?"

That simple question made her stop dead in her tracks, as she looked down at the ground. "I've been with them for 10 years... I don't really want to talk about it though..." she replied closing her eyes trying not to let a tear fall from her eyes. It was something she didn't want to touch since it only hurt her and brought her hatred towards the people who gave her up. Luffy noticed the change in Isabella and put an arm around her shoulders as he gave her a cheeky grin.

"Don't worry. I won't pressure you to tell me about it." he said as a way of trying to cheer her up.

She couldn't help, but smile at him for the nice gesture of cheering her up. "Thanks, Luffy. You're a good friend."

As they reached the Marine base, there was only one thing Luffy had to say, "It looks pretty ugly up close."

"Agreed."


	3. Chapter 3

Luffy and Isabella looked at Koby once they reached the Marine Base, knowing what he wanted. "Go ahead, Koby." Luffy said, grinning at him. "B-But I'm not ready yet! Besides, that incident got me thinking..." Koby said somehow changing his mind about it. "Don't tell me you're chickening out… Isn't this what you wanted?" Isabella said looking amused at his nervousness.

As they kept talking, they didn't notice Luffy climbing up the wall, looking for the famous pirate hunter. Koby looked to where Luffy was and panicked as he saw him. "Ah! Luffy! " "Monster... I wonder where he is." Luffy asked as he looked around. Meanwhile, Isabella looked on the other side, climbing up the wall and sitting on top of it, and noticed something in the courtyard.

"You can't find him easily. He's probably being kept in a secret room or something." Koby said as he watched Luffy. "Or he's at the courtyard where everyone can see him." Isabella said as she tried to see the person clearly.

The boys looked at her and ran to see what was there. They saw a tanned guy wearing a dirtied white shirt, black dirt-covered long pants, a green cloth wrapped around his waist, black shoes, and a black bandana that covered most of his mossy-green hair was tied to a cross. The man slowly lifted his terrifying gaze at nothing in particular with an evil aura that surrounded him.

"Look at that person." said Luffy as he stared at the man right beside Isabella. Koby climbed up the wall on Luffy's left, looking at the person who was tied to a cross. Somehow he recognized the person making him fall down from the wall, with a panicked look on his face. The other two look at him in confusion as to why he did that. "What's wrong?" asked Luffy.

"It's… It's him! It's Roronoa Zolo! T-That black bandana and cloth around his waist… and that intimidating aura! It's Zolo!" Koby replied. Never in his life would he ever want to get near the famous Pirate Hunter, yet here he was in that place where the Marines kept him.

Both pirates looked back at the guy and tilted their heads to the side as they tried to imagine the guy looking very intimidating. "He doesn't look so intimidating to me..." said Isabella as she blinked. "Looks to me those ropes are pretty easy to break." said Luffy as he looked at the ropes. Isabella scoffed as she looked at Luffy. "You can if you had a knife. No way you can break those ropes with your bare hands."

Koby couldn't believe how clam and collected the two pirates were as they talked about Zolo, and the last thing he wanted was for them to get near him. "S-Stop joking! If you free him, he could make a mess in the town and even kill you!" Suddenly they all heard a voice, "Hey, you!"

They all looked at the direction they thought the voice came from, and saw that it was Zolo who called them. "Could you please… come over here and untie me? I've been tied up for 9 days and I'm exhausted." Luffy and Isabella just blinked in curiosity at his request. "Look, he's smiling." Luffy said as he observed him. "For someone who's tied to a cross, he's got guts for asking something like that to a couple of strangers." Isabella stated as she sung her legs a bit like a little girl.

Seeing that they wouldn't do his request, Zolo tried bribing them. "I'll repay you. I culd hunt down a fugitive and give you the rewards. I'm not lying. I'll keep my words." Koby obviously didn't believe his words and with his panicked look, he turned to the two pirates next to him. "Don't do it! Don't be tricked by his words! If you free him, he'll kill us and escape!"

Isabella just yawned and Luffy stared at Zolo. "He can't kill me because… I'm strong too." "Besides, he looks too weak to even move, plus he looks like he hasn't eaten in days." Isabella said as she rubbed one of her eyes, feeling a bit bored and sleepy. Koby looked like he was going to give up on the as he heard their answers, thinking, 'T-They're totally hopeless…'

Suddenly, they heard a noise near them, finally noticing a ladder there. A little girl climbed up looked at them sternly. She told them to keep quiet as she jumped over the wall with something in her hands, and walked over to Zolo. Koby panicked as he watched her, wanting to stop her, but was afraid to do so. "Ah! Don't do it! It's dangerous!" As she approached him, he asked, "Hey, what are you doing here?"

Koby looked at Luffy and Isabella to see if either of them would do something. "Luffy, Izzy, go stop her! She could be killed!" They just looked at him with blank looks on their faces. "Do it yourself." they said bluntly.

Zolo just looked at her with that intimidating stare of his, but she didn't move from her spot. "Do you want to die or something? Get lost!" "Um, brother, I made some rice balls for you! You haven't eaten for a long time right? This is the first time I made rice balls…" Zolo was a bit touched by the little girl's actions, but he didn't want to show that he was soft in front of the other three that were watching. "I'm not hungry! Go away!" "But-" "I don't want it! Leave me! I'll kill you if you don't go!"

"Roronoa Zolo!" someone exclaimed out of nowhere. "Don't pick on little kids or else I'll have to report my father about it." In the distance they saw a young skinny man with blond bowl-cut hair dressed in black clothing with a leopard patterned shirt underneath the jacket and some leopard-patterned shoes walking with two marine officers walking alongside him. "Some weirdo just came." said Luffy. "He must be important in the Marine..." said Koby as he sighed in relief. "Thank goodness the girl is safe now..."

"Something tells me that he's not the good guy." Isabella said as she watched. Luffy and Koby looked at her in confusion before looking back at the scene. "Tch... If it isn't the lieutenant's bastard son..." said Zolo as he scowled at him. That only got the man annoyed. "Bastard? Don't get cocky. My dad is a Marine lieutenant!" the man threatened not liking his attitude one bit. He then turned to the little girl, quickly seeing the riceballs in her hands.

"Well hello, little girl. These riceballs look pretty tasty." he said as he took one of the riceballs from the girl. "Ah! Stop it!" yelled the girl as she tried to get it back. Taking a bite out of the riceball, he made a look of disgust, spitting out the food out of his mouth. "Horrible! You put too much sugar in it!" yelled the man as he cleaned his tongue. "You're supposed to put salt in these things!"

The girl looked sad seeing that someone didn't like her riceballs. "But... But I thought they'll taste better if they're sweet..." Suddenly, the man takes the other riceball, throwing it to the ground and began stomping on it. "How could someone eat something like this? Damn it!" "Aah! Stop it! Stop! He can't eat this anymore!" the little girl yelled in an attempt to save the riceball. The three of them looked at the scene looking sad since they couldn't do anything about it.

"Th-That's so cruel!" exclaimed Koby. "That girl worked so hard to make them..." Isabella gripped on the wall getting angrier by the second wanting to punch the guy in the face. Luffy seemed to notice this and gently put his hand over hers making her look at him and relax a bit, looking back to the scene.

"Don't worry! The ants will eat them all up." he said as he laughed at the little girl. "That's so cruel! I... I tried really hard to make them..." she said as tears fell out of her eyes. That only got him annoyed. "Aww... Don't cry! It's no wonder why I hate little brats so much.' he said trying to get her to stop crying.

"It's your fault, you know? Didn't you see what was written here? 'Anyone who helps a prisoner will be charged with the same crime.' 'Marine lieutenant Morgan' You know how scary my dad can be, right? You would've gotten the death penalty if you're a grown-up!"

He then looked at one of the soldiers behind him. "Oi, throw this brat out!" The soldier looked perplexed at his request. "Huh!" The man grabbed the soldier by the collar as she saw that he wasn't following orders. "I'm telling you to throw her outta here! Are you trying to disobey me! I'm telling dad!" he yelled infuriated at him. "A-Aye sir!"

Picking up the girl, the soldier threw the little girl over the wall, crashing into Isabella and then to Luffy who was standing on the ground, skidding him through the ground. She sat up, helping the little girl stand up and check for any injuries. "You ok?" The girl nodded and you stood up, holding her hand out to Luffy to help him up, watching the little girl run away back to the village. "Who knew that the Marines were this cruel with people?"

The man looked at Zolo with an annoyed look on his face. "I didn't think you'd have this kind of endurance. I'm going to keep you alive for one whole month." Not believing his words, Zolo said, "You better keep your promise!" The man only laughed as he began walking away. "Oh I'll keep my promise. If you can live like this for one month, I'll keep my words and release you! Good luck!"

After the man leaving, Zolo noticed Luffy standing in front of him with Isabella beside him. "You still haven't left? Leave now or else he'll go and tell his dad about it." "Oh yeah?" Luffy said, "I'm looking for someone to join my pirate fleet. She joined recently, but I want more people in it." Zolo only scoffed, "Pirate? Heh... So you just gave up on life and became a crook huh?" He then looked at Isabella. "And you. Did he force you into this too?" She just shook her head as she folded her arms. "Not really. I just willingly joined the crew. You're the first person he's ever going to force to join the pirate crew."

"It's my dream! There's nothing wrong with being a pirate!" said Luffy still trying to convince him. "Hm? Don't tell me you're gonna set me free and force me to join you." said Zolo with a smirk. "I haven't made up my mind yet. Since everyone thinks you're a bad guy." Zolo scoffed again, "A bad guy, huh? I'll never join you because I have something that I need to take care of. I could survive even if you don't help me! I just need to stay alive for one month. That bastard kid promised to let me go afterwards. I'm gonna do everything I can to stay alive, and fulfill my dreams!"

Luffy looked at him with admiration while Isabella just shoved her hands in her pockets in a bored manner. "Really?" asked Luffy. "If I were you I think I'd starve to death in a week." "That's why we're so different. Go find someone else to join you." "Well, you heard him, Luffy. Let's go." Isabella said pulling Luffy so they could get out of there. "Hey, hold on!" They both looked back at Zolo to wonder what he wanted. "That... can you pick it up for me?" Luffy looked to the ground seeing the smashed and dirtied riceball. "You want to eat this? But the riceball is all muddy." Luffy said as he picked it up. "Well I guess you cant be picky about food when you're hungry..."

"Sut up. Just give it to me. Let me eat all of it!" Zolo said opening his mouth wide. Luffy put it in his mouth, and both him and Isabella snickered at the faces he was making as he chewed and swallowed the food, starting to cough afterwards. "Do you want to kill yourself?" Luffy asked. "Tell that little girl..." Zolo started. "Tell her what!" Somehow Luffy was getting impatient with Zolo making Isabella sigh and shake her head. "Tell her the riceballs taste very good.. Thank you very much..." Both Luffy and Isabella smiled and nodded. "We'll be sure to tell her that when we get back to the village." she said starting to pull Luffy again so they could go to the village.


	4. Chapter 4

I finally put up Chapter 4! I'm so happy. Anyway, I have a problem writing fighting scenes, meaning that I really suck at them. If anyone could help me with the fighting scenes, that would be great. Oh and if anyone can draw a pic of Isabella, I would love you forever.

Gokudera: Isn't that what you always say and beg?

What the hell! What are you doing here? You're not even in this manga!

Gokudera: You left the door open, idiot woman.

*cue cricket chirp* Riiight... Note to self, close and lock the door...

Gokudera: *rolls his eyes* I'm going to the fridge to get something to eat. *walks to the kitchen*

Good luck with that! Sorry everyone for this little OOCness, but I felt bored.

?: Izzy!

Luffy, what are you doing here?

Luffy: Just wanted to say hi and wonder if you wanted to play tag.

Again? I suck at that game when you're around.

Luffy: Please? *puppy dog eyes*

*sighs* Fine... Everyone just continue on to the story. I'll be able to write the 5th chapter soon. *gets pulled outside the door by Luffy*

* * *

Chapter 4

"Really!"

"Yep! He ate all of it." said Luffy with a smile while sitting on one of the steps of the little girl's house.

The girl beamed with joy and relief after hearing Luffy. "I'm so happy!"

Koby was sitting on a barrel deep in thought examining Zolo's actions from before. "Hmm… Is he really that horrible person his reputation says he is…?"

The girl looked at him with a serious look on her face as she defended Zolo, "No, he isn't. Brother didn't do anything wrong. It's just that the people in this town are afraid of him."

That only made Isabella raise an eyebrow, but kept listening to the girl's tale. "He got arrested because of me… He killed Helmeppo's pet wolf because Helmeppo let his wolf run around and everyone got scared."

Luffy looked at the girl surprised and confused. "So you're saying that Zolo's only arrested because he killed Helmeppo's wolf"

The girl only nodded, her face looking sad. "Yeah."

"You're right... So maybe he had a bad temper, but chasing down fugitives..? Isn't that a big crime as well?" said Koby while adjusting his glasses a bit, still unsure whether Zolo is a good person or not.

"Well, some people have to do it to make a living. Not everyone can make some money easily." Isabella placed her arms behind her back, ruffling her short hair a bit. It was a wonder that no one had asked her if she was a girl or a boy yet, but she rather not think of it happening just yet.

"The only bad guys are the morgans! You'll get executed if you disobey them, so everyone is afraid of them."

Suddenly, a voice was heard in the distance, "Heh heh heh heh! Who dares raise his head! I'll tell my dad!" The four of them look towards the direction of the voice to see Helmeppo and two Marine soldiers walking with him. Do you want to be like Roronoa Zolo? I'm going to publicly execute him in three days! I'll use him to set an example for all of you! It's going to be pretty interesting..."

"Three days?" Luffy asked him as he stood up. "Didn't you say you'll give him a month?"

"Who are you? How rude." said Helmeppo before trying to contain his laughter. "I was only joking with him. Only an idiot would believe that. He he..."

Isabella winced at his words, remembering what Zolo told Luffy back there. _I just need to stay alive for one month. That bastard kid promised to let me go afterwards._ That was when Luffy Punched Helmeppo's face hard. He was angry at him for making such a dirty trick. It didn't take long before both Isabella and Koby held him down.

"Luffy! Stop, please! Calm down!" Koby yelled at him. "You want to mess with the marines or something!"

"You bastard!" It was clearly seen how angered Luffy was, and if either Koby or Isabella let go of him, they knew that he would beat up Helmeppo.

"Luffy, he's not worth it! Don't cause anymore trouble than we need!" Isabella told told Luffy, staring at his eyes. Luffy just calmed down a bit, but was still glaring at Helmeppo.

"Guys, I've decided! I'm gonna ask Zolo to join me!"

"T-This is bad! Who is he!" One villager said. "He dared to hit the lieutenant's son! Lieutenant Morgan won't forgive him!" says a nother villager.

Isabella and Koby were still holding back Luffy from beating up Helmeppo. "Luffy! Calm yourself! They are marines!" yelled Koby. "I don't care!" shouted Luffy, "A bastard is still a bastard!"

Helmeppo was getting picked up by the two Marine soldiers. "Y-You dare hit me! My dad hasn't even hit me once!"

"Ha! I wonder why!" yelled Isabella as she sent him a glare. "I wouldn't bother hitting a pompous annoying brat like you!"

That only got him angry as tears fell from his eyes. "I'm lieutenant Morgan's son! I'll tell him about this!"

The villagers got paralyzed in fear once he said that, while Luffy just kept struggling so that he could beat him up. "Why don't you fight me yourself!" yelled Luffy in anger.

Helmeppo only looked back at them with an evil grin on his face. "You'll regret hitting me. You'll get a death sentence for it!" Then they started running for the base before Luffy even got a chance to get them, him yelling, "And my dad will be the one who executes you! Bastard!"

Isabella picked up the straw hat, dusting it a bit, and handed it to Luffy. Luffy only smiled at her before placing it on his head looking serious. "He ran away..." said Koby as he watched them.

"It's meaningless to hit people like him." Luffy said.

The little girl ran up to the three of them looking all happy and excited. "Big brother, you were so cool! Just then I was scared to death!"

Luffy just grinned at her folding his arms. "Really? I should have hit him a couple more times."

Suddenly, the little girl's mother shouts, "R-Rika! Come here!" The little girl, now known as Rika, walked over to her mother while she hurried to get her inside. "Don't talk to strangers. You'll be executed too if you were mistaken as one of their friends."

Rika explained to her mother, "Mom, he's a good person, and so is Zolo."

"Don't be silly. Did you sneak into the execution site again?"

"No... No I didn't..." Rika looked back at the three sadly, watching Luffy telling her goodbye with a grin on his face.

Suddenly, Koby started freaking out saying, "Looks like we're gonna be in a lot of trouble! If the lieutenant gets mad, he might send Marines after us!"

"We'll deal with it when the time comes. I'm gonna go talk to Zolo." Luffy answered as he began to walk towards the base.

"Are you sure he'll believe us? He looked determined with the whole month promise." Isabella looked unsure about all of this, but she somehow guessed that Luffy had a plan in case Zolo didn't believe him.

"Well, it wouldn't hurt to try." said Luffy as he looked at her before continuing towards the base, the other two eventually following him.

Upon arriving the base, they reached the execution site where Zolo was. "Yo." greeted Luffy.

"It's you again? I told you that I didn't want to be a pirate." said Zolo as he watched Luffy.

_Somehow, I have a bad feeling about this... I guess it's because of the base and the fact that we're in an execution site... _thought Isabella as she watched Luffy and Zolo talking.

"I'm Luffy." said the straw hatted boy. "If I loosen up the ropes, then you're gonna join me, okay?"

Zolo just glared at him because of his persistance at joining his crew. "I told you clearly. I have things that I need to do." said the swordsman. "Besides, I'm not going to be a bad guy like a pirate."

"That's the difference?" said Luffy, "Besides, everyone already things you are a bad guy."

I don't care what they say about me. I haven't done one thing that I regretted in the past and it will be the same for the future. I won't become a pirate!" Anyone could see the determination in his eyes as he said those words, but Luffy just didn't seemed convinced.

"I don't care. You are going to join me." he said.

"Don't decide for yourself!" yelled Zolo andgrily.

"You don't have much of a choice." said Isabella making him look at her, "Once he says you're joining his crew, there's no way to stop him unless you agree."

Luffy just grinned in agreement to what she said then looked at Zolo. "I heard that you use a katana, is that right?"

"If I wasn't tied up, I could use a katana." said Zolo.

"Where is the katana?"

"That bastard kid took it. It's something that I treasure the most... other than my life."

"Treasure huh?It must be something great." Then he came up with an idea, "Okay! I'm gonna go to where the bastard kid is, and get your katana back."

Zolo looked at him in disbelief. "What?"

"But if you want me to return it to you, you'll have to join me."

"That's dirty!" yelled Zolo.

_Even I think that what he proposed is dirty... What is wrong with me? _thought Isabella as she sweatdropped.

With that having said, Luffy ran along happily to get the katana back while Isabella just sat in front of Zolo in case anything happened.

"Is he planning on sneaking into the base?" wondered Zolo. "What a fool..."

"Don't underestimate Luffy." said Isabella as she stared at the gate looking bored as always. "He might not look it, but he's very strong."

All of a sudden, she sees Luffy flying up towards the top of the base. "I wonder why he decided to go up there... Maybe to get a better view." That's when she saw a huge part of a large statue falling off the roof making her facepalm. "And now we're in trouble..."

"If we're in trouble, then why aren't you untying me?" asked Zolo.

Isabella just looked at him blankly before staring at the gate. "I can't since the captain hasn't given me any orders."

Koby then started running towards the two of them. "Where's Luffy?"

"In the base getting Zolo's katana." Isabella replied bluntly.

"What? He's inside the base? He's too hot-headed..." Koby then started untying the rope and binded Zolo.

"If you help me, they are going to kill you too." said Zolo.

"You shouldn't be arrested. I can't stand those Marines." stated Koby. "I'm going to become a real Marine. Just like the way Luffy is determined to become the Pirate King."

"What? P-Pirate King? You're joking right?"

Koby chuckled a bit. "I was a bit shocked when I first heard him, but he's serious."

Suddenly, Isabella quickly stood up, pushing Koby out of the way and got shot on her shoulder, landing on the ground. The two boys stared in shock wondering how did she know that was coming to him. Zolo just looked at the top of the base seeing Lieutenant Morgan there.


	5. Chapter 5

Hey everyone! I'm finally back from so many months of procrastination and writer's block! And of course college is also keeping me busy. It's not easy studying informational systems. T.T

Luffy: Yay! -hugs her very tightly-

Can't... breath... -turning blue-

Luffy: -lets go and laughs- Sorry about that!

Anyway... On with the show!

Gokudera: Izzy does not own any of the One Piece characters except for Isabella.

Where'd you come from?

Gokudera: Back door...

Ooooohhh...

* * *

Chapter 5

"Izzy! Izzy!" Koby shouted with tears falling from his eyes. "Please don't die!"

Zolo looked at them, wondering if Isabella was alright, "Hey, are you alright?"

A groan came from Isabella as she slowly sat up with a hand holding onto the wound on her shoulder. "Yeah... I'll live..." she replied, wincing a bit from the pain. She looked at the wound on her shoulder, trying to get the bullet out, but groaned in pain by only just touching it. "Crap… No good…"

Seeing that she was fine, Zolo looked to the side hearing the soldiers running to their location. "Run for your lives… They're almost here…"

Koby shook his head while still worrying about Isabella's wound. "We can't! We've got to set you free as soon as possible!"

"There is no need to worry about me. As long as I can stand this for a month, they'll set me free."

"It looks like your luck has run out…" said Isabella as she looked at him, though she winced because of the bullet wound. "They're not going to set you free… You'll be killed in three days."

"Nonsense… That bastard promised me that if I could survive this for a month, he'd free me…" Zolo looked at both of them with a disbelieving look on his face.

"He never intended to keep his promise! That's why Luffy punched him on your behalf… Because he was toying with you!"

"What did you just say...?"

"The navy will never let the two of you off. Please. After I set you free, please help rescue Luffy. I will not force you to become a pirate; however, he's our savior."

"He's more your savior than mine." Isabella added, still holding her shoulder.

"Luffy is very strong. As long as you two join forces… You all will definitely be able to escape this town."

It was then that the navy soldiers finally arrived to their position, "That's enough! The three of you who have betrayed Lieutenant Morgan die here!"

Zolo look frustrated, while Koby was freaked out. Isabella mumbled some curse words before looking at the building. "Hurry up, Luffy… We don't have much time…"

Suddenly, they hear a loud voice out of nowhere. "Surround the base! Don't let the guy with the straw hat escape!" When the three of them look, they see Lieutenant Morgan standing there. "How interesting… The four of you are planning to cause political upheaval?" He then turns to look at Zolo. "Roronoa Zolo… I've heard of your name for a long time, but do not underestimate me. Before my great power… you're just garbage!" The soldiers now started to aim at the three. "Ready!"

The three of them couldn't do anything to prevent them from shooting. Koby was frozen in fear, his mind blank with only one thing on his mind, and that was that he was going to die. Zolo was still tied up, but he had a scared look that showed regret, the one look many have when they regret not doing the things they wished to do. Isabella could stop the soldiers from shooting them if she wasn't injured. Wincing a bit, she looked toward the building where Luffy is before looking back at the Lieutenant and his soldiers. "Luffy... Where the hell are you?"

"Fire!" yelled the Lieutenant, now starting to hear gunshots that were coming straight at the three. It was then that they heard a window breaking from afar, and in came Luffy with the swords, and deflecting the bullets with his own body. Everyone was shocked at him for having done such a thing which was impossible to do. Flexing his body for a moment, Luffy slingshotted the bullets back at them with a laugh.

With a sigh, Isabella just shook her head at him. "He never ceases to amaze me..." she mumbled to herself.

"What kind of human are you!" Zolo shouted, still looking amazed at Luffy.

Luffy only smirked at him. "I am the one who will become the Pirate King!" He then took the three katanas off his back just to show them to him. "Look, which one is yout treasured katana? I couldn't figure it out so I brought all three of them."

"All three belong to me... because I use three katanas." he said.

Looking towards the group of navy men, Luffy stated, "Resisting the Navy here together will make you an outlaw! Or maybe you want to die here?"

"Are you the offspring of the devil...?" Zolo remarked. "Forget it... Rather than to die here, why don't I just accede to your request... and become a pirate!"


End file.
